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Sunday, September 7, 2008

It is easy to overlook the small things, and a few small things can make riding out a storm much more pleasant. I had all the big bases covered - water, food, shelter. What I missed when the power was down was a quick and easy way to make a cup of coffee. I don't even LIKE coffee, but somehow, someway, having a hot cuppa cafe mocha while you're sitting in a dark room listening to the wind rock the house is comforting.

Storm-riding can be damn boring. Sitting alone in a dark, humid, hot room gets old pretty quick. You can only sleep for so long. A few good books, board games, art supplies, some knitting, ANYTHING helps. But, you need some light you won't feel guilty about using.

While in the Corps, I had an earlier version of this stove. It was a fast and easy way to heat water, and used any fuel from avgas to alcohol. I missed it dearly. Sure, I had charcoal and other ways to cook, but they were too much effort for a beverage, and impractical to use indoors.

Half of the city was wandering around looking for a way to charge cell phones.

Generators are loud and expensive to run. Ours (5500 Watts) burned 25 gallons of gas per day, running at approximately half load. That much fuel is rarely easy to procure during a storm, and somewhat of a pain to stockpile before one.

You don't NEED A/C, a full-size refrigerator and TV, all the normal comforts of home during a natural disaster. A small fan, a 12v electric cooler, some light, a tiny combo TV/radio to stay up on the news, and you're golden. That stove I linked earlier? It'll easily heat a typical room if a blizzard is more likely to be your likely disaster.

Toss in a cell phone and a netbook, and you're better off 90% of humanity today, and 100% of all the humans that lived more than say, 50 years ago.

Don't count on your computer or the internet for either entertainment OR information. Too many ways for the infrastructure to fail. Radio is your reliable friend.

I can see a real market for cheap, temporary, micro-power generation. I mean just enough juice for a small LED light, a battery charger, and that coffee. The latest generation of netbooks from ACER, HP, or Dell wouldn't overtax such a system.

A wind generator is the perfect choice for a hurricane - you know there will be a breeze. I'm talking something the size of a sat dish, max, that could be thrown up or taken down in a few minutes.

Another idea would be a micro gas generator. Something powered by a tiny four-stroke engine, 50 cc max, maybe as much as half that size. It could run quietly for days on a five gallon supply.

Of course, a solar power panel would be handy in some cases. The ultimate setup would be a system incorporating all three - you'd be covered in any situation.

Bikes are a great way to get around after the crisis winds down, but before things are back to normal. Many hybrid bikes are on the market - even Wal-Mart sells one. It would seem a simple undertaking to design one that could charge a battery as you cruise around the city looking for that hotspot. :-) Done right, the battery would be compatible with your home wind/solar/microgen system. Add a trainer for the bike, and you could human-power your system indoors during the emergency if needed.

More exotic options exist. Two that come to mind are fuel cells, and thermoelectric generation. But, both of these options are much more pricey, though recent interest in hydrogen/methanol fuel cells for automotive use will eventually change that. However, after your battery bank is fully charged, your home system could switch to production of hydrogen via electrolysis for even greater reserve power capacity.

Well, let's see how much of this stuff I can scrounge before Ike gets here. :-)

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

I'll post two or three more posts in the next few days, assuming we get power. Topics will include some tips I discovered for getting through things like this, and some thoughts on why a few crazy people stay here with a Gustav bearing down.

So, good deed done, we decide to take off again down St. Charles to proceed further uptown.

I'm minding my own business, riding along the sidewalk, and decide to head into the street. I see a nice short curb onto the strret. Chris is a few feet behind me.

Later, he said he knew something was wrong when my front wheel disappeared.

There was this storm drain, you see, and it was about 18 inches deep.

Problem was, it was full of leaves and twigs that had blown off the trees, so it looked very innocent. It wasn't. Chris later called it a "Tiger Trap." I'm pretty good on a bike, but Lance Armstrong wasn't getting out of this one.

I'm pedaling along, and before I even know I'm going down I have face-planted into the asphalt, and can't see out of my right eye for blood, and something that won't blink out. (eyebrow flap)I'm seeing stars, and dazed.

Pic below for non-squeamish....

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Chris was cussing me when he took that pic, as he was standing downwind and it was still gusty. My blood was blowing all over him. Scalp wounds, you know.

A few hours and three stitches later, I'm out of the emergency room. The docs and nurses were glad to see me, as they had had a VERY slow day, and they all enjoyed seeing the pics of Bush's tree.

They said I was actually pretty damn lucky, as some folks that do a head-first dive into the pavement break a neck. All I know is, my entire right neck, back and shoulder feel like they've been beat with a bat by a large surly man, and the right side of my head is all swollen and deformed. They say it'll go away.

I asked the doc as he was sewing me up if I'd have a scar. He said the standard boilerplate - "anytime you get stiched, there is a possibility you'll have a scar. I said, "Cool. Chicks dig scars."

I went out to see how the city was faring yesterday morning. The wind was blustery, still gusting 40-50 mph from time to time, which made for what Charles Johnson would call a really fascist headwind.

We saw a few large trees down, oaks taken in their prime...

Down on Decatur, by Cafe du Monde, a pelican decided that fighting the wind was just too much hard work, and was taking a break under the Cafe du Monde awning. He started getting antsy when I snapped this pic, as I was barely six feet from him.

So then (my cycling buddy Chris and I) decided to take a run down St. Charles Ave. to see how Uptown and the Garden District had fared, as that part of the city is Big Tree Central.

We opted to run down Bourbon, to see how all the bored reporters were dealing with the slow news day, and say hello to the Chubby's folks.

I ran into Jorge fron the Spanish News Agency. He got a kick out of me taking a pic of him taking a pic of us. As I said, slow news day.

Well, I allow that we ought to do something about that. So, I struggle and lever the tree up. But the wind is still gusting, so it only remains upright for a few minutes. I sure that some will find some potent symbolism in this, but I'll leave it alone. :-)

Howver, I had reason to be talking to a few cops shortly after that, and they got the message to the Powers That Be about the tree. Mayor Nagin mentioned today in his latest press confrerence that they knew the tree was down, but that his experts told him they were sure it could be saved.

Well, Gustav ended up hammering the coastal parishes and Baton Rouge a lot harder than it did New Orleans.

Power is a big problem. The regional electric Monopoly says it has never been hit harder - to include Katrina. It makes a bit of sense, as Gustav was much more of a wind storm than a surge or rain-bringer. 13 of the 14 main transmission lines bringing power to the city went down. They're talking two weeks to get power completely restored.

I'll have more thoughts on how to cope with power outages later, in another post. I hae Definitely learned a lot, and there are several things I would do different.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Looks like the Guest of Honor has deigned to grace us with his presence.

This is the part that scares me. I'll tell you why. When the moist air of the storm mixes with the dry air over the land, THAT is when tornados form. After Gustav is well and truly here, that chance goes away.

It's all ears on deck to hear that tell-tale sound of a twister. Only warning I'll get. It's a sound I know. I grew up in Kansas, and have heard it before.

So long as I don't hear that train a' comin', we'll be fine.

If it's any consolation, the twister spawned by hurricanes are generally small, short-lived, and weak ones.

Kimberly and I are previously umm, uh, well-acquainted, and she is certainly qualified to comment on my ass.

In the interests of fair play, I must disclose that women are about evenly divided as to whether or not I am more accurately described omitting the word "cute."

It is nice to know, however, that in my perilous situation this "looky-loo" (hat tip - Fox News) has an Emergency Poontang Button to press if things down here get too gnarly to save his ass, be it cute or no.

Sunday, August 31, 2008

No people on the streets, no wind, no rain... Whatever shall we talk about?

Me, I'd put on Firefly reruns. Failing that, I'd send Geraldo and his crew down to Johnny White's and have them get loaded toasting FEMA and Jindal, and the NG and the cops and the bus drivers and so on... do a viewer call in for suggestions for the next category of SheepDogs to slam a shot for.. at least that would be entertaining.

But NOOOOO....

I swear, you can't make this shit up...

He's interviewing some of the NG troops. Fine, give the poor guy a few minutes of face time on the national toob.

So, he asks this junior enlisted guy if he knew when he was going back to Iraq!

The poor trooper would get his ass handed to him if he said, in the astronomically unlikely event that he knew. I garan-dam-tee he doesn't. He mumbles something inaudibly vague...

Foiled at this attempt to earn a Pulitzer, Geraldo pauses, wheels grind..."How many people are here, you think, soldier?"

NG: I think not any, sir.

Geraldo: Why do you think the evacuation was so effective?

And you know, YOU KNOW, from that look on his face that the guy would give his next promotion to say...

"Because they got their asses blasted last time, you fucking moron!"

But, Discipline prevails.

NG: I think we did a better job on our mission this time, sir.

So, Geraldo starts interviewing his engineer. They're talking about the cables they're using on their broadcast setup, complete with lovingly detailed closeups more aptly used on a Pussycat Dolls backside. For an encore, we get closeups of the broadcast team's stack of water, and Gatorade. They have Gatorade!

This is gripping stuff. Please can we cut to Greta with some updates on that Callee kid?

Oh, wait, news! In the distance, a vehicle is coming down the street. In a display of intuitive genius unrivaled in broadcast history, Geraldo opines...

Some emails and comments imply that I have some sort of death wish, or that I'm a thrillseekin' idjit.

Puhleeze.

I am in a well built multi-story home. This home took 4-5 ft. of water during Katrina. A 30 ft. storm surge would not flood the upper stories of this residence. The lower floor is constructed entirely of steel-reinforced cinder blocks. It would require a direct hit from a Fujita Class V tornado to take down this home. The French Quarter hotel where Mayor Nagin and the rest of the emergency staff, along with virtually all the media reporting on the storm, are staying, is no better protected.

The only place I can readily imagine that could be safer would be in a bank vault, provided I could locate one high enough not to flood.

I think that for the vast majority of people, evacuation in the face of this storm is the only prudent course of action. I believe my situation to be unique, or I would have bugged out.

I have been a believer in disaster preparedness for a long, long time. I could survive for at least, I don't know, three months maybe, without any outside resources. The most likely repercussion, the almost certain repercussion, is that I'll be without power for awhile, and thus unable to access the Net. I have no doubt that someone that reads this will then conclude that I have met my reward, in more ways than one. We shall see.

I realize nobody is bulletproof, and Fate can fsck you.A tree branch could blow through a window into my skull - or a tornado could hit before I get downstairs. But the chances of that happening are much less than the everyday ordinary risks that you will certainly take today if you choose to get into an automobile, and I for sure hope that none of you thinking I'm a fool smoke cigarettes.

There will always be those folks that are just too stubborn, or, some would say, too stupid, to evacuate.

Johnny White's is famous in the Big Easy as the bar that NEVER closes. Open 24/7/365, it somehow stayed open during Katrina and the aftermath. So, of course, this tiny little locals bar, popular with the late night service industry crowd, has no plans to close for Gustav, either.

I popped in to say hello. Marita, working today until 11 tonight, confirmed what I knew would be the case. They'll be there come Hell AND High Water.

Marita

Johnny's is a tiny bar, with only a half-dozen stools. It was full, for the record. Helping her keep things in order is her dog, whose name I didn't get. He didn't seem too worried about things. :-)

Further up Bourbon toward Canal was a Philly Sub Shop called Chubby's. They've only been open a year or so, but it run by Nawlins natives, and they're not closing either.

Security was not a problem there, either. They've set out free coffee and sodas for the uniformed folks, and the place had several NOPD cops and NG troopers ordering, and believe it or not, PAYING for their sandwiches. They do make one helluva cheesesteak.

Not shown on the menu are the daquiris and beer. :-)

Like many Nawlins businesses, it's a family affair. I talked briefly with Dominic, who assured me that they were staying open. I asked him what he was going to do when the power inevitably failed. He simply shrugged and said they'd figure something out.

I asked him what he was going to do for customers after the curfew came into force. He laughed and waved at all the uniforms in the place.

The only time he wasn't smiling was when I pointed the camera at him.

Running the the grill was his dad, Barry.

The French Quarter did not flood during Katrina. I am willing to bet it will not this time either. The Quarter, and the Garden District, are two of the oldest sections of the city for a reason - they are the highest in elevation. The neighborhoods that flooded for Katrina are parts of the town that were only developed upon after the levees were built. They were essentially undrainable marsh before then. These folks will have to deal with an extended loss of power, and maybe minor flooding from the rain - it is not uncommon for Bourbon to overspill its gutters simply from the torrential downpours the city sees. But storm surge? I'll bet good money not.

The other Katrina problem was looting. With the improved enforcement this time around, that won't be a problem either.

I'm happy to report that the Powers That Be, no doubt singed by their Katrina experience, seem to be on top of things. Both the NG and NOPD are all over the Quarter, and I'm told the rest of the city. Nagin has been all over the tube warning looters that they will go to jail, directly to jail, in this case, Angola, the state prison.

The National Guard on Bourbon

Troops of the 141st

I talked with these soldiers for a bit. Most have been to the SandBox. The boarded windows are de rigeur for all of The Quarter.

All the participants are on the stage, just waiting for the Special Guest to arrive. Hurry up and wait.